P O S T S C R I P T THE SOCIETY OF POSTAL HISTORIANS. Volume 59: No.3 (Whole No.257) Autumn 2009

Transcription

1 AUTUMN 2009 P O S T S C R I P T THE SOCIETY OF POSTAL HISTORIANS Volume 59: No.3 (Whole No.257) Autumn 2009 HMS Daring. The tremors were shaking the Daring's hull like depth charges. Captain Gick, in a radio message. [see page 145] CONTENTS PAGE Plas Tan Y Bwlch Meeting, 15 to 17 May The Siege of Paris Ashley Lawrence 116 After the Siege of Paris Alan Wood 118 Herefordshire Roger Broomfield 119 Falklands War 1982 Gerald Marriner 120 Amberley Meeting, 6 June Egypt British Forces Andy Gould 124 Rhodes 1939 to 1946 Paul Woodness years of GPO Operations in Sark David Gurney 135 Three Færoe Letters to Denmark, 1851, 1853 and 1855 Susan Oliver 138 Falkland Islands : Late Fee Wilf Veevers 139 Elvington Meeting, 15 August Decimalisation in Belize Bill Gibb 141 Azerbaijan Mike Oxley 143 The Danish West Indies Peter Rooke 144 The Ionian Islands, the 1953 Earthquake Richard Stroud 145 Mail from Britain to Spain Geoffrey Lewis 150 Lake Iseo Grahame Lindsey 154 Air Crash Near Oslo 15 April 1963 Susan Oliver 157 The WW2 Lati Substitute Route of Pan American Airways John Wilson 158 Footnotes to the Postal History of N E England Mike Mapleton 163 Secretary s Notes 114

2 A FEW WORDS FROM THE PRESIDENT Though our hobby is perhaps less seasonal than it used to be things do slow down a little in the summer. Many will have been on holiday and hopefully will return refreshed and ready to resume an active collecting life. September has arrived and in philatelic terms a new season has begun. As a collector of France I know that there will shortly be an influx of auction catalogues and new opportunities available to enable us to expand our collections and horizons even further. The French still largely follow the old traditions of shutting up shop in July, only to reappear a couple of months later eager to get going again. The autumn seems to be full of conferences and exhibitions and one cannot get to everything. In October I and some other French collectors will make our way to Vichy to their annual postal history weekend. This is an event that we have always found enjoyable with plenty of displays and a good ambience. Then in November the final SPH meeting for this year is at Hythe. Though it is a long trip for some the English Channel in late autumn should be quite invigorating so do try and make it and get some sea air before Christmas. FROM RICHARD STROUD I wish to place on record the wonderful support given to me by so many members of the SPH following my recent neurosurgery to relieve a bilateral subdural haematoma. There were telephone calls, hospital visits, home visits, letters, s and a remarkable number of Get Well cards. This support really did help me get back on my feet again very quickly and shows how the SPH is a family willing to support each other in times of crisis (as well as helping each other in one of the important matters in life - postal history). I have appreciated the response from members and hope that this short note will show my thanks to all of you. I hope to resume attending meetings again soon, perhaps the Sherborne meeting in the autumn. SECRETARY S NOTES Susan McEwen The news from Joan Harper is that Gordon is slowly recovering from his stoke. He is walking again. They plan to move house at the end of October, and the new address will be published then. Address Changes etc Walton, Frank Change phone Delete work phone replace with mobile Eastgate, Tony Add womble@heleneastgate.plus.com Pizer, Robin Change address 1 Forest Corner, Liss Forest, GU33 7RA phone and rpizer@pizer1.demon.co.uk Wilson, John Change address High Bray Farmhouse, Brayford, Barnstaple, EX32 7QS and phone Postscript 59/114

3 2010 Programme The full 2010 programme will be announced at the AGM, but for those who already have their 2010 diaries, here are the first few months meetings: Saturday 6 February Waltham on the Wolds Friday 9 April to 11 April Conference Llandrindod Wells Thursday 6 May Pre-Festival meeting Philatex extra, Victoria Monday 10 May SPH Dinner Apothecaries Hall, Blackfriars Thursday 13 May Display meeting and reception Spink, London Saturday 10 July Cockermouth Trout Hotel / Church hall The Apothecaries Hall site, shows where the dinner will be held. for the latest news about the 2010 festival. PLAS TAN Y BWLCH, 15 TO 17 MAY 2009 CONVENOR : David Trapnell Attendance list (including the President, President-Elect and six Past Presidents) Displays by - Major Ashley Lawrence The siege of Paris, 1870 Peter Kelly France - Problems with the delivery of mail and how these were dealt with to 1900 Other Peter Maybury France - 18c Heavier Letters. Hans Smith France's Illyrian ports 1808 to1814 Gavin Wood* German occupation of the Channel Islands Richard Stock Plas Tan y Bwlch John Forbes-Nixon Postcards from 1870 Philip Lindley Temporary facilities at Royal Ascot and Windsor Horse Show Ray Lindley * Austrian Philatelic Congress Commemorative cards from 1902 Rex Dixon Bohemia and Moravia Gerald Marriner Falkland Islands 1982 Graham Mark WW1 beginning and end Alan Wood After the siege of Paris John Jackson Registered mail of the Dutch West Indies Ian Dyce Far Eastern Maritime mail Gilbert Wheat QV 1½ on cover David Trapnell The Treaty of Versailles Roger Broomfield Herefordshire Others attending Chris Hitchen (President), Molly Broomfield*, Peter Chadwick, Joan & Gordon Harper, Sheila Wood* * = Guest Postscript 59/115

4 THE SIEGE OF PARIS Ashley Lawrence Ashley Lawrence gave the display on Friday evening entitled The Siege of Paris, He showed a variety of letters and cards flown aboard the 67 manned balloons that left Paris, the world s first organised airmail service. These included plis confiés, letters entrusted to the pilot or passenger. One letter travelled aboard L Armand Barbès, the balloon by which Léon Gambetta escaped from Paris to reorganise French resistance in the provinces. The astonishing flight of La Ville d Orléans was represented by two letters, one retrieved by fishermen from the mailbag that was jettisoned in the North Sea, the other recovered from the balloon when it eventually landed at the Tunet Farm in the mountains of Norway, after a record-breaking flight of nearly 1,000 miles. Pigeons supplied by the Society Espérance were taken aboard most of the balloons, and used to bring messages back to the capital. The micro-photographer M. Dagron was flown out of Paris, with his assistants and equipment, aboard Niepce and Daguerre, to apply their expertise to the Pigeon Post service. The latter balloon had the dubious distinction of being brought down by Krupps Gum Ballon, the world s first anti-aircraft gun! Ashley showed a copy of the booklet that was later written by M. Dagron about his adventures. The Pigeon Post service, first used for sending government dispatches on microfilm, was so successful that by mid-november 1870 it was opened to the general public. Ashley showed how a 20-word message was sent by Mrs. Brown from London to be microfilmed in Tours, then carried by pigeon from Bordeaux, and eventually delivered by telegram to her husband William Brown in Paris. The Telegram containing the message delivered by the Pigeon Post Postscript 59/116

5 He also displayed a letter recovered from a Boule de Moulins that had been carried in a metal sphere submerged beneath the River Seine. There were cartoons, medals, and souvenirs of the Siege, including the Mrs. Simpson facsimile of a Ballon Monté printed by Letts. The display included illustrations of the monument, designed by Bartholdi and financed by public subscription, that was erected in 1906 to commemorate the aeronauts and pigeons of the Siege of Paris, sadly, this splendid monument was demolished by the Germans during their occupation of Paris in The Bartholdi monument to the Aeronauts and Pigeons of the Siege The display ended with a letter written by a German officer at the beginning of the Siege in September 1870, from the captured Château de Nainville, south of Paris. During the course of translating and researching this letter, Ashley had traced Countess Cahen d Anvers, a descendent of the family that owned the Château, which is now State owned and serves as the French equivalent of Chequers. Ashley narrated how he and the Countess were invited to dine at the Château : an object lesson in the fun and excitement that can result from postal history! Postscript 59/117

6 AFTER THE SIEGE OF PARIS Alan Wood The siege of Paris was concluded with the signing of an armistice convention on 28 January Article 15 of this convention made provision for a postal service for unsealed letters, via the Prussian military headquarters at Versailles. The earliest date of mail by this service is 10 February Letters had to be franked 20 centimes to cover the cost to Versailles and postage was due for onward transmission. Letters to foreign countries were received at Versailles and the boxed VERSAILLES/AUSWECHSELUNGS STELLE handstamp applied on the reverse of one cover in a bundle. Letters were shown with this handstamp on mail to Spain, Germany, Belgium, Switzerland, USA and Great Britain. Surprisingly the letter to Baltimore had not been sent via the American diplomatic bag. The letters to Great Britain were addressed to London, Barnet and Southampton. Postscript 59/118

7 HEREFORDSHIRE Roger Broomfield The display consisted of nine sheets of Herefordshire material, each showing a handstamp relating to the payment, non-payment or underpayment of items of mail. The first was the well-known red handstruck 1 of Ledbury to indicate prepayment of the 1d of the Uniform Penny Post (1840). The second, a black handstruck 1 of Hereford was used to indicate a charge of 1d to be levied, being the charge to facilitate the forwarding of a letter (1875). Handstruck 2 s (all in black) were shown from Ledbury (1862 & 1864) to indicate a postage due charge on underpaid heavy letters, and from Leominster (1840) and Ross (1844) to indicate the postage due charge of 2d to be levied on unpaid mail. The well-known fourpenny-post period handstruck 4 s were shown from Kington and from Leominster. Lastly, two sheets were shown with items each carrying a strike, in red, of the distinctly uncommon double-arc circular mark inscribed PAID AT ROSS used both before (1838) and after (1840) the introduction of the Uniform Penny Post one penny charge for forwarding Postscript 59/119

8 FALKLANDS WAR 1982 : MAIL FROM THE BRITISH TROOPS AND THE FALKLAND ISLANDERS Gerald Marriner The Falkland Islands were occupied by Argentine forces on 2 April However, the first sheet in this display showed an Argentine postcard sent to the Falklands in The picture side depicted an Argentine destroyer and the message simply stated Fear our Navy! A detachment of Royal Marines was stationed on the Islands since the 1950s, known as Naval Party There was a 1979 OHMS cover with the Naval Party 8901 cachet addressed to the Governor of The Falkland Islands. Ascension was a staging post for the Falkland campaign. A commercial cover was displayed posted on 10 May 1982 sent from Plymouth to The Commanding Officer, Royal Naval Group, Ascension Island. A British Forces Post Office was set up on Ascension Island in April There was a commercial airletter sent in June 1982 from the Royal Navy Provost Marshall to Plymouth requesting a new 1982 calendar, because the local crabs had destroyed his existing calendar! Mail was cancelled with an FPO 777 datestamp, applied unusually in red - a colour used for official free mail from the Island. There were several commercial items from members of the Task Force to their relatives in England. It should be noted that commercial Task Force mail usually did not have a ship s cachet. The first item in this section was sent from a marine on HMS Fearless to his mother in Leeds. This cover had a London MARITIME MAIL machine cancel for 18 April This contained the letter which was censored, parts of the message being cut out. The envelope was resealed with sellotape. This may be the ONLY recorded example of censored mail from the British Task Force. It is recorded that censorship of mail was ONLY carried out on mail from HMS Fearless. There was a cover sent at the correct 15½p letter rate from a Medical Officer aboard the Baltic Ferry. This was addressed to Coventry and had received the London Maritime Mail cancel for 22 May His long chatty letter stated that his mail would be dropped off at Ascension. An unusual cover was shown from the Captain of HMS Brilliant to America. The contents were a reply to an American Lt Colonel who did not understand why Great Britain was sending a Task Force to regain the Falkland Islands. An airletter was shown sent from a Corporal on board the QEII addressed to Kent. This was written on 29 May and the message stated that he had been at sea for 17 days. There were three covers sent from England to troops on various ships. These included a cover addressed to The Forces Chaplain who was also aboard the QEII. The second (shown over) was a cover from Haverfordwest addressed to a Sergeant on the Atlantic Conveyor. This was dated 22 May and was from his girl friend. It is unlikely that this cover reached the ship as the Atlantic Conveyor was sunk on 25 May. The third cover (5 May) was addressed to the Commanding officer of the ship RFA Tidespring. This was unusual in that the 15½p stamp was cancelled with a HOUSE OF LORDS datestamp. A temporary Forces Post Office accompanied the troops as they marched across the Falklands. This was set up at Ajax Bay on 25 May, a few days after the landings at San Carlos. The FPO was only at this location for nine days. There are few examples of commercial mail recorded from this period. One airletter sent on 2 June was included in this display. Postage was free. The Field Post Office used a double circle FPO 141 datestamp. The letter was from a member of 3 Commando Brigade to Leeds. Postscript 59/120

9 The FPO was transferred to Teal Inlet on 10 June and used the same datestamp. The FPO was situated in a tent which also served as 3 Commando Brigade HQ. This location was only in use for six days and again mail from this period is scarce. One such example is illustrated above. It is from an Intelligence Officer to his wife in Devon. Note the FPO 141 datestamp for 11 June. Again no postage was required. On arrival in Devon, this was re directed to Telford. The FPO 141 datestamp was used from Port Stanley Post Office when it re opened on 18 June. Postscript 59/121

10 Immediate post Liberation mail from the troops is also of philatelic interest. This display included two such items. The first was from N. Van Der Bijl to his wife. This was written on 25 June whilst he was on the Canberra. The airletter was then taken ashore before Canberra s departure later that day and was sent by air to London. On arrival this received the LONDON I.S. /MARITIME MAIL rubber packet datestamp for 29 June. The second was a postcard of the ship Canberra, written on 1 July whilst on the ship. This was off loaded at Ascension and sent on to London by air. On arrival, this received the London Maritime mail cancel for 5 July. The display was completed with examples of covers sent by the Falkland Islanders either locally or to the UK. Falkland Island stamps were not allowed for this service. Similarly, the Port Stanley, Falkland Islands datestamp was also NOT used for this service. Initially Falkland stamps were deleted in ink and a ISLAS MALVINAS 9409 / REPUBLICA ARGENTINA datestamp was applied. Later, Argentine stamps were introduced at the Port Stanley Post Office. The rate for local mail was 1000 pesos. The cover above shows a cover sent to England where it can be seen that the rate was 3,400 pesos. Note the Islas Malvinas datestamp cancelling the stamps. RATES TO REFORM A Guide to the High Postage Rates in Great Britain, by Rex Clark FRPSL. Price 25.00, plus postage and packing from Rex Clark, Tree Tops, Fulbeck, Morpeth, Northumberland, NE61 3JT. rexclark@tiscali.co.uk for details. The author states that the aim of this book is to provide a practical guide to and record of the complexities of postal rates in Britain prior to the introduction of the Uniform Penny Post in January In six chapters he has been able to do that and much more! In the first chapter From Vindolanda to Waterloo he sets out the history of letter carrying from the writing tablets found during the excavations of the Roman fort at Vindolanda in Northumberland to the opening of the King s Post to the public from 1635 and detailing the postal rates to the end of the 18 th century. The second chapter The High Rates Period gives an insight into how postal rates developed in the early 19th century, not only for inland mail but also for overseas mail, and provides detail of the variety and complexity of the postal rates which had become the highest in British history. The third chapter Hints of Change shows the then need for revising these high postal rates and what developed. The fourth chapter The Interim Uniform Fourpenny Post summarises the gathering momentum for a change to a cheaper postal system. Chapter five The Uniform Penny Post provides further background, involving Rowland Hill and others, and the development of this new system. The final chapter Cover Stories or Always Read the Letter puts into perspective the importance of pre-stamp postal history. Postscript 59/122

11 AMBERLEY MEETING, 6 JUNE 2009 CONVENORS : Grahame Lindsey and Eddie Lawrence This was the first meeting held at the Amberley Museum & Heritage Centre in Sussex. The meeting was over-subscribed and popular with many wives attending to take advantage of the museum. The room was excellent for the number present but could not accommodate more. The Museum Restaurant provided a buffet lunch and the refreshments in both the morning and afternoon. The President, Chris Hitchen, welcomed the 27 members and 11 guests who attended. Appropriately, for the 65th anniversary of the of the D-Day landings, one of the Guests, Derek Walker, a former Fellow of the Society who had to resign in 2004 due to poor health, attended. He was one of the D-Day veterans and attained the age of 90 two weeks before the meeting. The major display to open the proceedings was given by Andy Gould, entitled British Forces in Egypt. Twenty of the Members and Guests present gave short displays David Ashby Early NSW & VDL Brian Asquith Wakefield Mike Bament G.B. Aspects of Free Post Philip Beale Sierra Leone Censors Graham Booth Le Havre to Brighton 1843 to 1847 Ron Brown* Channel Islands Mulreadys & penny blacks & reds. Michael Elliott * Finland Volunteers in the Winter War Susan McEwen Malayan Emergency Nigel Gooch Controlle 1922 David Gurney 50 years of GPO Operations in Sark, Channel Islands John Hammonds Aspects of French Aerophilately Chris Oliver* W.W.2 civil censorship in South Africa Susan Oliver Faroe Islands Miscellany Bash Orhan Austrian Offices in Turkey Maurice Porter Post Offices in Kent Patrick Reid Tasmania Tax Marks Hans Smith The Austrian Post in Egypt Tony Stanford Tangier Air Mails Wilf Vevers Falkland Island postcards Paul Woodness Rhodes 1939 to 1946 Others present Anne Asquith*, John Forbes-Nixon, Peter Kelly, Eddie Lawrence, Charles Leonard, Lesley Leonard*, Grahame Lindsey, Gillian Lindsey*, Julia Lindsey*, Andrew Norris, Barbara Orhan*, Heather Porter*, Valerie Vevers*, Derek Walker*, Alison Woodness* and John Yeomans * = Guest The meeting was chaired by Grahame Lindsey and the President, Chris Hitchen, gave a Vote of Thanks to all. Postscript 59/123

12 EGYPT BRITISH FORCES Andy Gould 1. Postal Concession 1932 to 1941 On 1 November 1931, the Egyptian post office increased the postage rate for letters to Great Britain from 1 piastre to 1½ piastre and the increase caused a great deal of concern and hardship to the thousands of British troops stationed in Egypt at the time, as letter writing was the primary method of communication to their loved ones at home. Following protests and complaints from the troops, the War Office made representations to the Egyptian Government, and a concession was obtained for a continuation of the old 1 piastre letter rate to Great Britain for all service personnel. To compensate for the loss of revenue 10,000 for the first year and 6,000 for the second year was paid to the Egyptian post office. Arrangements were made for the NAAFI to print and sell special seals to be affixed to the back of each envelope, to be posted in one of the special post boxes set up at Unit and Regimental bases. Lt Col C Frazer, using the NAAFI logo as a motif, sketched out a design for the special seals, which was drawn up in ink by Ivor Roberts. Once approved, the printing was carried out by Hanbury Tomsett & Co Ltd of Willesden. The seals were affixed to the reverse of the envelope and were normally cancelled with a dumb retta cancel and a crown circle EGYPT POSTAGE PREPAID cancel with a number in the centre denoting the military unit was struck at the top right of the front of the envelope along with the MPO or other circular datestamp. Initially, only normal surface rate letters to Great Britain were eligible for the concession. Letters to other countries, airmail, registered letters and parcels were posted in the standard way at Egyptian post offices using Egyptian stamps. Over time the service was extended to cover other services and mail to other commonwealth countries and military bases across the Middle East particularly as the number of troops increased dramatically at the outbreak of the Second World War. Numeral frank 7, used at Moascar, was reported to have been lost down a well, although other stories as to why it ceased being used on 6 March 1933 do exist. Postscript 59/124

13 The concession rate for letters was 1 piastre (10 milliemes) however greetings cards could be sent at Christmas and New Year for 3 milliemes, providing the envelopes were unsealed. In this case, the seals were not affixed over the flap of the envelope. Large, overweight envelopes could also be posted using the concessionary service and surface letter rates were used. Multiples of the seals are found, normally on military mail. On 1 March 1936, the NAAFI seals were replaced by Army Post stamps issued by the Egypt Post Office. The concessionary rates remained unchanged. The stamps were now placed on the front of the envelope and cancelled with the Military Post Office date stamps although civil cancels are found where a unit had no facilities of its own. Army Post stamps were also issued for the Christmas and New Year greetings concessionary 3 milliemes rate. The Christmas and New Year concession was also extended to mails for the troops of the dominions when they arrived in Egypt early in The Army post stamps with the portrait of King Faud were replaced by smaller versions with the portrait of King Farouk in Use of the King Farouk 3 milliemes greetings stamps was very limited as there were ample stocks of the 3 milliemes Faud stamp in 1939 and by Christmas 1940, greetings cards and messages were sent free to family members. The correct usage of these stamps, therefore, was to send greetings cards to friends and acquaintances for the Christmas and New Year period 1940/41, and all known genuine usages are dated between 23 October and 30 November Hobbs recorded only 12 such covers; Smith suggests 20; I believe that there may be a few more! Correct usage of the 3 milliemes King Farouk Army Post stamp on a re-directed cover to the UK. Postscript 59/125

14 2. Egypt Postage Prepaid Datestamps Following the outbreak of war in September 1939, thousands of British and Dominion troops arrived in Egypt. Although the postal concession charges were extended to all the new troops, there was a reluctance to accept the postal arrangements then in place with the Egyptian Postal Authorities, paying money to and handing mail over to a foreign authority at a time of war. Representations were made to the Egyptian Government, which took some months to complete, and the handling of the mail was passed to the military authorities on the 1 May 1941, and the use of the Army Post stamps was discontinued. The new arrangements required the use of new datestamps and the Egyptian Authorities insisted on the inclusion of the word Egypt although the British would have preferred to hide the country of origin of any mail such as with Field Post Office cancellations. New postage rates were introduced along with the new arrangements for mail to the homeland of the troops: Surface Postcards & Letters Free (up to 2oz) Airmail Letter Cards 3d Airmail Letters to UK or SA 10d Airmail Letters to Aus or NZ 9d The new datestamps included the words Egypt Postage Prepaid (EPP), a numerical indicator (from 1 to 155) denoting the forces unit where it was used, and the date. Four types of the circular date stamps have been identified differing in layout and size. Later, a wavy line and a slogan cancellation were introduced at the Base Army Post Office in Cairo. The date stamps were made of a composite material and wore out relatively quickly. They were substituted, often with a new number, pending replacements being produced and when reissued, replacements were often sent to a different unit from the original one to which it was issued. Use diminished quickly as the war drew to a close, and the patterns of use changed with the date stamps being redeployed regularly around the military units. The latest recoded use of the Egypt Postage Prepaid datestamps was from EPP32 on 5 November Type I of the EPP datestamp has dashes between the day, month and year; the month is in an abbreviated letter form; is 28mm in diameter. Postscript 59/126

15 Type II of the EPP datestamps is about 28mm in diameter has dots between the day, month and year; with the month denoted in letters. Type III of the EPP datestamps is similar to Type II but with the month in Roman numerals. Postscript 59/127

16 Type IV of the EPP datestamp is similar to Type I, however the diameter of the cancellation is smaller at 25mm. Introduced in July 1942, the Type V EPP datestamp is a wavy line canceller used at the British Army Base Post Office in Cairo. Postscript 59/128

17 3. The Airgraph The wavy line canceller being used at the Base Post Office in Cairo was replaced in 1943 with Type VI the IT PAYS TO LEND slogan datestamp. In 1935 with planning underway for a British and American transatlantic air service, the two airlines concerned, Imperial Airways and Pan-American Airways, joined with Eastman Kodak Limited to form a new company Airgraphs Limited to further develop a micro-photography technique that had its origins in the Franco-Prussian war of The Airgraph forms measured 10 x8 on which the sender wrote their message; these forms were prepaid by the use of postage stamps (3d for service personnel) and sent to a central processing centre where they were microfilmed onto 16mm film. The Airgraphs were numbered serially in bundles of 1600, corresponding to the number that could be photographed onto a 100ft length of film. At the receiving end, the film was developed, and printed onto a 5 x4 photograph. The original forms were stored for a period of 3 months before being destroyed; however a number of original forms escaped destruction. The first Airgraphs were received by the Middle East Forces on 21April 1941, processed at the Kodak works in Cairo and the films were dispatched by air, flying via West Africa, and arriving in the UK on 13 May On arrival in the UK the films were handed to Kodak to develop and print at their works in Wealdstone. The prints were handed to the London GPO, placed in window envelopes, sorted and dispatched in the normal mails. Airgraphs were subject to the censor in the same manner as other mail. Postscript 59/129

18 First Airgraph sent from the UK to Egypt. (Facsimile) The service from the UK to the Middle East was started in August 1941 once developing equipment had been installed in Cairo, and extended to other countries as the equipment became available. The service was extended to civilians in May 1942 at the rate of 8d or 40mills. This was reduced to 3d in 1944 when competition from Air Letters, now being sold to civilians, started to dramatically impact the numbers being sent. Special Greetings Airgraphs were created for Christmas and New Year messages late in 1941 and were also produced in 1942, 1943 and Some of the more artistic souls designed their own pictorial messages for birthdays and similar celebrations. As the war drew to a close new air mail arrangements were put in place such that letters not exceeding one ounce were only charged 1½d. The 3d Airgraph thus became more expensive and slower than a normal letter and its use declined rapidly. The last date for messages was the 31 July 1945, by which time 350 million had been transmitted. Postscript 59/130

19 RHODES 1939 TO 1946 Paul Woodness The Italians used the period between WW1 and 1939 to strengthen and improve significantly the military installations throughout the Dodecanese Group and thus ensured they were fully prepared for WW2. The period of provides much interest for Postal Historians. Official document [Fig. 1] from the National Workers Party requesting information on an individual seeking to join the Party. Does he have a criminal record? Or are there any other issues contrary to the ideals of the National Fascist Party. Fig. 1 Italy entered WW2 in June 1940 and Rhodes became the Postal Hub for all mail throughout the Aegean. The Military Post Office operated from a building next to the civilian office and initially used the Posta Militaire N ro 550 cancellation [Fig. 2] this cancel was issued in a variety of types throughout the first years of the war. Mute cancellations [Fig. 3] were also introduced in an effort to disguise location of the sender. Fig. 2 Fig. 3 Censorship was operated on all external mail and carried out in Rhodes with a variety of censor marks; some are thought to refer to specific islands but there is as yet no specific information linking marks to locations. Fig. 4 shows an interesting Postal Stationery Card from a mother to her son; at Prisoner of War Camp No. 39 which was located at Castle Maxstoke, Warwickshire. Fig. 4 Postscript 59/131

20 Following the overthrow of Mussolini in July 1943 an order was issued to remove all Fascist symbols from date stamps, which was achieved by blocking out the symbols as shown in Fig. 5. Two Army Postal Cards cancelled with the special date stamp: POSTA MILITAIRE N.550 SERV. VOLANTE 1 (or 2) These postmarks were used exclusively for mail that was collected from remote outposts in Rhodes N. 1 and other islands N.2. Fig. 5 In September 1943, Italy surrendered and whilst Britain had a brief opportunity to invade; it was not taken and German forces stationed in the Aegean took control of Rhodes and the other Greek islands. Italian soldiers who did not wish to fight with the Germans were placed in interment camps; an example of ingoing mail to Camp Raccolta No.2. is shown in Fig. 6. Fig. 6 The use of a letter card is unusual. Following the Allies conquest of Greece in 1944 the German forces had increasing difficulty in getting mail to and from Germany. As a means of restricting the amount of mail; franchise stamps were overprinted INSELPOST and each soldier was given a limited supply for personal use on mail to and from the islands. The stamps were overprinted in Zagreb in November 1944 and mail was cancelled by the standard Feldpost cancel. Fig. 7 shows the use of the letter b the unit FPN in manuscript identifies the location as Rhodes. Fig. 7 Postscript 59/132

21 The Controller of the British Post Office arrived in Rhodes on 11 May 1945, the post office was closed for stock taking and eventually reopened on 11 June when British stamps overprinted M.E.F. where used. Whilst using British stamps, the post office did not have a British date stamp and continued to use the Italian canceller. Fig. 8 shows a censored cover to U.S.A. with the ZD/2 sealing strip. Fig. 8 A rather interesting and important censored cover [Fig. 9]; from Chief Censor Dodecanese to Chief Postal Censor in Washington, U.S.A. This cover has a near perfect example of the PASSED CENSOR 1 DODECANESE tying a ZD/1 sealing strip. Fig. 9 Italian postal stationery card [Fig. 10] which would have been correct for internal mail, it was however treated as underpaid as Italy no longer controlled the islands. The deficit of L1.80 was paid with the use of a British postage due stamp overprinted M.E.F. The rate of exchange was 400 lire to 1 Sterling, and the deficiency was calculated at L1.80 x 400 divided by 240 which worked out at 3d. Fig 10 Postscript 59/133

22 A relatively recent discovery has shown that following the British arrival; the B.S.A.P (British South Africa Police) served in Rhodes [Fig. 11]. Their role was in maintaining law and order; and in training and establishing a local police force. Cover and contents to Rhodesia in which the sender, St. Jorre, was writing to establish the likelihood of resuming duties in Salisbury as he was expecting to leave Rhodes on 28 February St. Jorre had left Salisbury in 1941 and served throughout in the Middle East prior to arriving in Rhodes. Sent through the British Field Post Office 375. This is the only number that can be definitely placed at Rhodes Fig. 11 In 1946 a date stamp in English was produced in Egypt by adapting an old Italian date stamp and issued for Rhodes and a few other important islands. [Fig. 12] Interesting cover sent from Rhodes in 1946 to Eindhoven. The cover was flown to Croydon and transferred to a KLM flight to Amsterdam, following bad weather it tried to land at Schiphol, after a number of unsuccessful landings, it finally hit the runway at great speed and crashed; killing all 21 passengers and 5 crew. Fig 12 Postscript 59/134

23 50 YEARS OF GPO OPERATIONS IN SARK, CHANNEL ISLANDS 1890s TO 1940s David Gurney A Sub-Post office was opened in Sark, under Guernsey, in 1857 and a Mr Elias Queripel was appointed as Sark s first Sub- Post Master at an annual salary of An undated double arc handstamp was issued and this is extremely rare with only four copies surviving. A rubber Climax dater was issued in 1885 for use with postal orders and only two copies of this are known. A small 21mm single circle datestamp was issued in April 1890 in conjunction with its appointment as a Money Order Office and this remained in constant postal use until the 1940s. Used with the code letters A, B and C, only a dozen copies of the B code are known and only one with the C code. Postscript 59/135

24 Local improvements to the Island s postal service were made during the 1890s although a request for a telegraph cable to be laid from Guernsey were considered, but turned down on cost grounds. Sark was appointed as a Railway Sub-Office (R.S.O.) in 1896 as the mails were pre-sorted into the Sark bag on the London & South Western TPO. In 1899 a Movable Letter Box facility was made available on the Sark/ Guernsey mail boat. It was not until 1903 that Sark received a telegraph service and the telegraphic code XRK was allocated to the Sark Sub-Post office. The earliest use of a Parcel Post label at Sark was in April 1902 and five different printings are known to have been used between 1902 and In 1905 a new postal regulation permitted Postmasters to arrange for the conduct of a person to an address by express messenger and a Mr Henry Turner of Guernsey decided he would be the first human parcel. On payment of the requisite fee of 5s. 10d., the Guernsey Postmaster allocated Messenger William Gurney (no relation) to escort Mr Turner with a stamped form to the Post office in Sark where a receipt was duly given. A well watched and photographed event in both Islands! ** A standard pattern double circle datestamp was issued to Sark in 1926 and this use was reflected until 1948 and is shown on the reduced size commercial bisected 2d GVI cover below. This use was necessitated by the shortage of 1d stamps until the German approved local Arms stamps were available. The Sub-Post office remained open throughout the German military occupation of the Channel Islands although there was very little work and few boats carrying such little mail as there was. When Sark ran out of registration labels in 1944 following the issue of the 2½d Arms stamps, some old HERM labels were sent by the Guernsey Postmaster and a very few are known with HERM obliterated and SARK written above in ink. Postscript 59/136

25 Sark was liberated on 8 May 1945 and the local Guernsey Arms stamps were invalidated for postal purposes from 13 April The third Anniversary of the Liberation of the Channel Islands was commemorated on 8 May 1948 and this registered cover of 21 September 1948 from Sark shows both values of the special stamps cancelled with the new double circle datestamp issued in **PS A similar event occurred in June 1940 when Leonard Palmer, an Alderney resident on business in Guernsey, was unable to return due to lack of space due to the evacuations. He registered himself as a parcel and, accompanied by a postman, finalised his affairs in Alderney and then evacuated to England with his family! Postscript 59/137

26 THREE FÆROE LETTERS TO DENMARK, 1851, 1853 AND 1855 Susan Oliver These three letters, all written from Thorshavn, are addressed to the Office of the Administration and Direction for the Royal Greenland and Færoese Trade in Copenhagen and the address on the first letter of 1851 is written in English which is surprising because the letter itself is written in Danish. Maybe this is because the letter passed through the UK en route to Denmark. After leaving the Færoes the letter travelled to the Shetland Islands and received a black boxed handstamp of Lerwick applied on 15th February 1851, followed by a red cancellation of 24th February put on in London and on arrival in Hamburg the letter received a blue double ring handstamp "K.D.O.P.A. HAMBURG/ 28/2 which was struck on the reverse of the letter. On the front can be found a red/brown manuscript "7" and a black "6". The second letter is written on 24th April 1853 and addressed in Danish to the same office as the first letter and it also has a boxed Lerwick mark but this time in green colour, dated April 24th, there are two London marks in red of May 2nd and 3rd and the German cancellation being a black double ring "K.P.A./ALTONA" and in the centre the date 7/5/53. There is a manuscript "45" in red-brown crayon and a black "6". At the top left is written "P. Matchless" presumably the name of the ship, and there is a mark in ink at the top of the letter which cannot be translated. The third letter is likewise written at Thorshavn on 10th December 1855 and addressed in similar fashion and shows a green boxed Lerwick cancellation of January 17th 1856, and also on the front is a red/brown crayon figure "9 1/2" and a black "40" and a blue "7". At the top left hand corner one can read in English "over 1/2 oz ". The sender has written "No. 1" at the top in the centre. On the reverse is a London mark of January 28th and the double ring black handstamp of "K.D.O.P.A. HAMBURG/30/1" There is also an oval handstamp in black "--- P.A./30 Jan 56" and manuscript figures 31/9 which probably refers to a list or number. Unfortunately the handwriting of these three letters is difficult to read and therefore they cannot be translated and although they are written in the 1850's these are early letters sent from the Færoe Islands. Letter sent from Thorshavn 10 December 1855 to København to the administration and Direction for the Royal Greenland and Færoese trade in København Postscript 59/138

27 FALKLAND ISLANDS : LATE FEE Wilf Vevers It is known that around the 1890s and early 1900s there was a system in Stanley for making up supplementary mails that would be sent on the waiting steamer after the mails had officially closed and that an extra fee of 2d was charged on each item for this service. Two straight line LATE FEE handstamps exist which would have been supplied around this time and from the wear on them, they appear to have been used but to date no examples have been recorded on mail. When they were used or whether they were always used is not known but the postcard illustrated here appears to be an example of late fee mail where the handstamp was not applied. The card was written 20 July 1900 by Hugo Schlottfeld, the German Consul and former Kosmos Shipping Agent in Stanley and addressed to Buenos Aires at the correct 1d foreign rate for a postcard but with an added 2d stamp. The message on the card reads: Today I received in the post the missing letter dated 16 th March which, to judge from the date stamp, was sent to Chile. I received the cheque No 592 dated 14 th March. In the meantime you should have received the stamps ordered to the value of 10/- as well as my short note of 28 th June. Please inform Messrs. Delfino that the cheque was transferred to Messrs. G. Moeller for power of attorney and thus the whole matter completed. I can offer you 1878 Falkland stamps 1/- and 6d at the price of 2/6d each from my own stock. It would appear from this that Sr. Castagnino had written to Hugo Schlottfeld on 16 March 1900 ordering stamps and enclosing a cheque dated 14 March. It would seem that not having received his stamps, Sr. Castagnino wrote again, probably in late May or early June and that Hugo Schlottfeld received this letter via the Kosmos steamer Ammon which arrived in Stanley from the River Plate on 15 June. This was the last Kosmos vessel to call at Stanley under the old mail contract, and on 12 July the Pacific Steam Navigation steamer Orellana arrived from the River Plate, being the first vessel to call under the new mail contract. Between these dates, on 28 June, Hugo Schlottfeld wrote to Sr. Castagnino enclosing the stamps ordered and expected these to have gone on the Orellana. Unknown to Hugo Schlottfeld, the River Plate mail was not sent on her as she was bound for Punta Arenas, so his letter was still in Stanley when he wrote the card. Postscript 59/139

28 We know this because I have seen the envelope of 28 June to Sr. Castagnino in a friend s collection and as it was registered it was backstamped in Buenos Aires on 5 August The P.S.N.C. steamer Oravia arrived in Stanley on 30 July 1900, bound for the River Plate, and Hugo Schlottfeld, having received the missing March letter, would have wished to let Sr. Castagnino know as soon as possible that he had received the letter and payment for the stamps. The next northbound steamer was the P.S.N.C. steamer Iberia which was not due until 24 August. Although the card does not bear a late fee marking, the 2d stamp has clearly been separated from the normal postage rate payment. It has been suggested that the 2d could have been paying a registration fee but there are no registration markings on the card and having examined a number of registered letters sent by Hugo Schlottfeld, I have yet to find one where he has not endorsed it for sending by registered post. Accordingly, as the mails for the Oravia would have closed by 30 July but she was not sailing until 31 July, there is no doubt in my mind, based on all the information available, that this card is the first recorded late fee item from the Falklands. ELVINGTON MEETING, 15 AUGUST 2009 CONVENORS: John Sussex and Peter Maybury Present: 35 members and guests. Displays John Sussex Isle of Man during WW2 Norman Higson Cheltenham Penny Post Philip Longbottom Early Turkish Stamped Covers 1863 to c1870 Peter Rooke Postal Stationery of the Danish West Indies Peter Kelly La Reunion Maritime Mail John Forbes-Nixon G.B. Postal Reforms GPU 1 July 1875 Tony Tudor Malta WW2 John Whiteside Roumania Internal Mail, 1 December 1941 to 30 November 1942 Norman Hoggarth Types of Aviation Disasters Gerald Marriner Channel Islands - WW2 Ronnie Shiers* 1929 PUC Mike Mapleton Miscellany Chris Oliver* WW2 South Africa Censored Mail Mike Roberts Sierra Leone Censored Mail and fantasy cricket XI Bill Gibb Decimalisation of the British Honduras Bernard Lucas Iran airmails Robert Jack* Afghanistan Martyn Cusworth Mail through the Valparaiso PO Rod Unwin Ottoman Damascus Max Smith Indian TPOs Mike Oxley Azerbaijan Maurice Porter Dover Mike Roberts (Ilk) Falkland Islands Inward Mail Douglas Armitage Egypt King Faud first issue 1922 to 1936 Frank Walton South West Africa Also attending: Chris Hitchen, Susan Oliver, Peter Chadwick, Mike Fulford, John Jackson, Peter Maybury, Tony Shepherd, Richard Stock, Ewa Mapleton* and Heather Porter* * = Guest Postscript 59/140

29 DECIMALISATION IN BELIZE Bill Gibb On 1 January 1888 the currency of British Honduras was decimalised to a system of dollars and cents. The new currency was not permitted parity with the US dollar on the Gold Standard, but was fixed to the Guatemalan dollar. The Guatemalan dollar was valued at 3/11½d and the local Belize dollar was valued at a notional 80% of the US dollar. As the US dollar equated roughly to 2 cents to the 1d, this meant that UPU rates in the local currency would have to be higher in face, although not in actual value. The current stamps and postal stationery were overprinted to show this change in currency. Overseas rates became 4d letter rate became 10 cents (UPU rate 8 cents) 4d registration became 10 cents (UPU rate 4 cents) 1½d post card rate became 5 cents (UPU rate 3 cents) These rates were in excess of the actual UPU for no known reason and rates on covers from this period are often irrational. It may be that people used the US postal rates in error. On 1 January 1891 the UPU reduced the overseas rates and again British Honduras reduced postal rates on approximately 60% of parity. Overseas rates became 2½d letter rate became 6 cents (UPU rate 5 cents) 2d registration became 6cents (UPU rate 4 cents) 1d post card rate became 3 cents (UPU rate 2 cents) On 15 October 1894 British Honduras gained parity with the Gold Standard and the US dollar, necessitating a further change of postal rates. Overseas rates became 2½d letter rate became 5 cents (UPU rate) 2d registration became 5 cents (UPU rate 4 cents) 1d post card rate became 2 cents (UPU rate) In the first seven years of decimalisation, there were constant examples of underpayment and overpayment of rates, and most rates were in excess of the actual exchange rates, although there is no evidence of complaint or questioning of the excess payments. 4 September 1888 To Hamburg franked at 8 cents and thus underpaid by 2 cents. Multiple use of bisects seem common at this time even on apparently commercial mail. Marked T (type UP2) at Belize and taxed 20 pfennigs at Hamburg. (20pf equates to 2½d.) Inscribed via New Orleans and New York and carried to New Orleans on the City of Dallas and to New York by rail. London transit for 20 September Postscript 59/141

30 On 1 January 1891 the UPU reduced the postage rates between countries in the Union. Due to the continuing link with the Guatamalan dollar, the rates are still at variance with the usual rates. Overseas rates became: letter rate 6 cents; registration 6 cents; post cards 3 cents cent letter rate to Akron, Ohio. New Orleans transit stamp on reverse. Whereas the letter rate of 6 cents was slightly underpaid equating to 2.4d, the registration rate was overpaid by 0.4d. The 12 cent rate equalled 9.6 cents US against the UPU rate of 9 cents, or 4½d cent registered rate to England. Birmingham receiver for 20 December Postscript 59/142

31 AZERBAIJAN Mike Oxley For most of the nineteenth century, Azerbaijan was divided between Russia and Persia. After the Russia Revolution in October 1917 the area, previously under Russian control, declared its independence on 27 May Russian stamps, which can be identified by their postmarks, continued to be used until new stamps were issued in October Cancelled at BAKU 4 October 1919 The first issue of stamps was popular with stamp dealers making up packets, and large quantities were sold, which required an immediate second printing. Large numbers of forgeries were produced because the stamps were crude and easy to copy. Russian troops invaded Azerbaijan on 27 April 1920 and a Soviet Republic was declared the next day. A new issue of stamps was produced in however the low values were not released until 1922., when they were sold, at many times their face value, because the supply of surcharged stamps to the post offices could not be maintained. Azerbijan, Armenia and Georgia were combined to form the Transcaucasian Federation of Soviet Republics on 12 March 1922, and Azerbaijan stamps were replaced by those of the Transcaucasian Federation from 1 October The Transcaucasian Federation was absorbed into the USSR on 6 July 1923, and Russian stamps replaced them in During the whole of this period, 191 to 1924, inflation was rampant. The postal authorities had to resort to surcharging to keep up with the rises in the postal rates. Remainders were sold afterwards by the Soviet Philatelic Agency, with their handstamp on the reverse. 20 October Chromo-lithographed by the Demidoff Printing Works, Baku. First printing on white paper with whitish gum. Imperf. A Registered cover, with the full set of the first printing of the first issue, postmarked at Baku on 1 December there was no interest in the new stamps in Azerbaijan at this time and this cover was posted by a visitor to himself Poste Restante. Postscript 59/143

32 THE DANISH WEST INDIES Peter Rooke Having been a major trading centre for slavery and sugar, as well as a key location for communication between the Caribbean and Europe, this group of islands, St Thomas, St John and St Croix, had their first stamps printed in Denmark by M W Ferslev and issued in There was an English Postal Agency is St Thomas from 1809 which facilitated mail from South America and the Caribbean to Europe. The first item of Danish West Indies postal stationery, the 6 cents single postcard, was issued on 15 December 1877, six years after the first Danish equivalent. The double postcard, with attached reply card, was issued in 1883, the same year as in Denmark, and the first stamped envelope was issued in 1887, 22 years after the Danish one. All the stationery was printed in Denmark although some of the overprints were processed in the Danish West Indies. There were no Official Service cards or Correspondence cards issued, unlike in Denmark, and by the age of the Aerogramme, the islands belonged to the USA. The islands were actually sold to the USA for $25,000,000 on 31 March On 1 November 1906, 8,000 envelopes and 30,000 postcards were destroyed by the Postal Administration. This followed the currency change from 100 cents to 1 dollar to 100 bits to 1 franc on 1 April hence 1 cent became 5 bits and 100 bits = 1 franc = 1 Danish krone. 1 franc had the nominal value of 20 cents US. POSTAL RATES FOR THE POSTAL STATIONERY OF THE DANISH WEST INDIES Postcards Stamped envelopes Date Inland Foreign countries Inland Foreign Countries Printed Matter cents 3 cents 2 cents (unsealed) cents 3 cents 3 cents 2 cents (unsealed including foreign) cent 2 cents 2 cents? bit 10 bit The first postcard issued in the Danish West Indies, the 6 cents violet, which catered for the foreign rate for postcards from 1 September The 16th ornament in the upper frame is always a corner ornament - the print run of this card was 3,225. Postscript 59/144

33 THE IONIAN ISLANDS, THE 1953 EARTHQUAKE Richard Stroud "We had the Second World War, then the Civil War, then the Earthquake. Put those three things together: how are you going to survive? It was impossible to survive on Kefalonia. The economy was hopeless: you had no work and no home. So we all left - 100,000 of us left" [Andreas Delaportas, from "Odysseus Unbound", R. Bittlestone, pub 2005, page 4.] The central Ionian Islands lie over an area of intense seismic activity. Underneath Kefalonia, the Eurasian/Aegean plate is colliding with the African plate at a combined rate of up to 45 mm per year, equal to 2 metres of overlap every 50 years. On the western coast northwards to the western coast of Lefkada is the Kephalonian Transform Fault, where the African plate is pushing against the European plate while also slipping past it and thrusting underneath it. In mid-august 1953, the Ionian Islands of Kefalonia, Ithaki and Zakynthos suffered a series of earthquakes high on the Richter Scale - at 6.4 on 9 August, then 6.8 on 11 August, and the most devastating at 7.2 (equivalent to an explosive force of 63 million tons of high explosive) on 12 August The major earthquake was followed by an aftershock a few hours later at 6.3 (equivalent to 6 million tons of high explosive). With the exception of the north of the island, Kefalonia suffered major destruction, with its principal towns - Argostoli and Lixouri - having to be razed and rebuilt. The island itself was uplifted two feet (60 cm). Zakynthos and Ithaki also suffered severely, but to a slightly lesser degree. Fig. 1 The epicentres of the August 1953 Earthquakes (Ref. 1) Early on Thursday 13 August 1953, the first relief ship arrived at Argostoli, being HMS Daring, (see front page) commanded by Captain P.D. Gick, one of several RN vessels ordered from Malta for immediate assistance. Captain Gick went ashore at once and soon doctors, medical supplies, milk and water were being ferried ashore. Later that morning four Israeli naval ships arrived to join the relief effort. By the Saturday, the naval ships moored at Argostoli included six British, four Israeli, two Italian, five US, plus the aircraft carrier USS Franklin Roosevelt. Postscript 59/145

34 We anchored off the little town of Argostoli - there was not a building standing and I could see people clustered in the open space by the jetty.... I went ashore at once and, as my boat came alongside, none of them moved.... The whole situation was quite uncanny, the people were alive but absolutely stunned. For three days, the earthquakes had gone on, destroying their homes, killing their relations and friends.... All they wanted was to get to a piece of land that stayed still.... My first job was to care for the wounded and to land all the supplies that I had. During that morning, sailors poured supplies ashore.... More ships arrived, Greek, Israeli, American, Italian, French and New Zealand, all offering everything they had to help. It became perhaps one of the most wonderful combined operations in history....the Greek Nation alone, recovering as they are from the devastation of the last war, can't hope to provide everything that is needed. And that's why the National Greek Earthquake Appeal has been started in this country. The Navies have done all they can.... It's up to you... to give all you can to the Greek Earthquake Appeal. Ref. 2) For some two years following the devastating earthquake of August 1953, mail from the affected islands - Kefalonia, Ithaki and Zakynthos - was not subject to postage. The postage was underwritten by the Greek State under Law 2745 (Νομοσ 2745). Internal mail was accepted untaxed: overseas mail was stamped, according to UPU regulations, at the nearest port (eg Patrai) or at Athens, the State paying the postage. Fig. 2 Cover from Zakynthos to Athens during the franchise period, postmarked ΖΑΚΥΝΘΟΣ 26 AYT 53. Postscript 59/146

35 On the front of Fig. 2, ΑΘΗΝΑΙ 28 VIII 53; on the reverse, a machine arrival ΑΘΗΝΑΙ VIII 53 ΑΦΙΞΙΣ with the slogan ΕΝΙΣΧΥΣΑΤΕ ΟΛΟΙ ΤΟΝ ΕΡΑΝΟΝ ΣΕΙΣΜΟΠΑΗΚΤΟΝ (literally "All (please) support the 'stricken by earthquake' fund"). An early item just two weeks after the earthquake and with the earthquake appeal slogan. From a member of the Greek Red Cross - the E.E.S. (Ο Ελληνιĸοσ Σρυθροσ Σταυροσ ). Fig. 3 Cover from Ithaki to Athens during the franchise period, postmarked ΙΘΑΚΗ 26 X 55. On the reverse, the arrival ΜΑΚΡΥΠΑΝΝΗ ΑΘΗΝΩΝ 28 X 55. Fig.45 Cover from Lixouri (Kefalonia) to Athens, being postal stationery (Form 539) of the American Red Cross. Postmarked ΛΗΞΟΥΡΙΟΝ (date unclear). On the reverse, a machine arrival ΑΘΗΝΑΙ 9 XI 53 ΑΦΙΞΙΣ From a member of the Greek Red Cross - the E.E.S. (Ο Ελληνιĸοσ Σρυθροσ Σταυροσ ) - in Lixouri. Postscript 59/147

36 Fig. 5 ΤΑ ΤΑΧ. ΤΕΛΗ ΚΑΤΕΒΛΗΘΕΣΑΝ / ΥΠΟ ΤΟΥ ΔΗΜΟΣΙΟΥ / ΝΟΜΟΣ 2745 Cover from Zakynthos to England during the franchise period. Instructional mark [Postal rates underwritten by Law 2745 of the State] and 2500 Δ adhesive applied at Patrai. Postmarked ΖΑΚΥΝΘΟΣ 11 V 54. On reverse, transit machine ΠΑΤΡΑΙ 12 V 54. Received by addressee on 15/5/54. Postscript 59/148

37 Fig. 6 Cover from Lixouri (Kefalonia) to Athens during the franchise period, apparently from an aid worker. Postmarked ΛΗΞΟΥΡΙΟΝ 2 V 54. On reverse, ΑΘΗΝΑΙ 3 V 54. With original letter. Thanks to Colin Tabeart for the photograph of HMS Daring on the cover page. References 1. Odysseus Unbound by Robert Bittlestone, Captain Gick, launching the Greek Earthquake Appeal on the BBC, 16 August Posting It: The Victorian Revolution in Letter Writing returns to Victorian Britain to examine the rise of the Penny Post ( ), which generated a postal network that anticipates and was as revolutionary to the Victorians in sending letters, newspapers, books, and other information as web blogs, , and text messages are to us today. Catherine J. Golden, professor of English at Skidmore College, is also author of Images of the Woman Reader in Victorian British and American Fiction and editor or co-editor of five additional books. The book is available with a 30% discount with code GOLDEN09 via (phone: 44 (0) ) until December 31, 2009; with a 40% discount with the code EPH9 via (phone ) until December 1, Postscript 59/149

38 MAIL FROM BRITAIN TO SPAIN Geoffrey Lewis For several years I have been studying Spain s system of postal charges on incoming mail in the period before adhesive stamps. In this article I will concentrate on mail from Britain to Spain. Spain collected postage charges on mail coming from foreign countries. The rate depended on the country of origin, but not on the route. The rate also depended on the weight. Unlike Britain or France, Spain did not charge for internal transit on incoming letters. However the rates were somewhat higher for mail addressed to some of the more remote parts of the country. This system was quite easy to administer. Letters entering Spain were examined at the first Post Office in Spain. These Post Offices were either near the French border, or at the major ports particularly Cadiz and Corunna. If the letter did not have some postmark to indicate its country of origin, the Spanish clerk applied a handstamp with the name of the country of origin. When the letter arrived at the Post Office at the destination, the clerks could see the country of origin. Depending on the weight of the letter, the rate could be calculated from the rate tables. This rate was marked on the letter either with a handstamp or in manuscript, and the amount was collected from the addressee. This system began on 1 September The rates are in the Spanish currency of reales (singular real) and are shown in Table 1. The Spanish weight unit was an onza, and this was very close to one English ounce in weight. Each onza was divided into 16 adarmes. There were two zones in Spain. Rates were higher to the zone which included Andalucia in the south of Spain, the Balearic islands, and various Spanish enclaves in North Africa. I call this zone Remote Spain, as it included the parts of Spain which were more remote from the main entry points into Spain on the French border. The other zone comprised the rest of Spain, and I refer to this as Main Spain. Effective on 1 January 1805, all Spanish rates were increased. This amounted to an increase of one real in all rates not only from Britain, but from all other countries. These rates for mail from Britain to Spain are shown in Table 2, and they remained in force until We will now look at a few covers from Britain to Spain. Cover with 1779 Rates to Main Spain Figure 1 depicts a letter to Barcelona from London dated 17 April At this time England and Spain were both at war with France, so the overland route via France was not available. The letter was carried by packet from Falmouth to Corunna, this service was authorised in June The postage fee of 1 shilling 6 pence is marked on the reverse. This was the single rate from London to Spain via Falmouth since Upon arrival in Spain at Corunna, the letter was stamped with the black straight-line INGLATERRA. This marking was needed to indicate the origin of the letter. Incidentally Spain always used a marking inscribed with the word for England regardless of which part of Britain the letter came from. Postscript 59/150

39 At Barcelona the postal clerks could readily calculate the postal charge. They knew that the letter originated in Britain. They could readily find the weight of the letter, in this case it was the single letter weight of up to four adarmes (one quarter of an ounce). They knew that Barcelona was in Main Spain. Consequently the rate was easily ascertained to be nine reales. This rate was written on the front of the cover. In this case the numeral 9 is preceded by the symbol for real which looks to us like a lower-case n. Spanish manuscript rate markings more frequently have the numeral followed by the symbol for reales, which looks to us somewhat like an upper-case P but in reality is a lower-case r for reales followed by a superscript lower-case s. Multiple Weight Cover with 1805 Rates to Remote Spain The cover illustrated in Figure 2 was addressed to the town of Xeres de la Frontera in Andalucia so we can see the rates on mail to Remote Spain. It has a clear London date-stamp of 10 February It went via France and was rated four shillings two pence. This is the rate for a letter weighing more than 1¼ ounces and less than 1½ ounces, and so comprises four British units of five pence and for the French transit a further six French units also of five pence each. When it arrived in Spain there was no need to apply any Spanish origin mark, because the origin of London was quite evident. The Spanish rates only refer to letters up to one ounce. I have never seen any other philatelic writer refer to what rate should be charged for letters weighing more than one ounce. I have accumulated illustrations of many such covers, and I have found a formula that explains the rate on most but not all covers. I believe the letter was weighed as X ounces and Y adarmes. For the X complete ounces a charge of X times the one-ounce rate was calculated. The remainder of Y adarmes was charged the same rate as letter just weighing Y adarmes. This letter was rated as 62 reales, which I believe was the rate for a 24 adarmes letter from Britain to remote Spain. This comprised 41 reales for one ounce plus 21 reales for a letter weighing eight adarmes. A weight of 24 adarmes is consistent with the rate and weight for the British charge. Cover with Rates both to Remote Spain and to Main Spain The cover in Figure 3 was sent from London on 30 December 1842 to the town of Caceres in the province of Extremadura near Portugal. It was sent via France and has a Calais cds on the obverse and a Bayonne cds on the reverse. The British charge was one shillings seven pence, the single rate from Britain to Spain via France. When the Spanish postal clerks handled this letter, they could see that the origin of London was clearly marked so there was no need for any further mark. However they had more trouble interpreting the destination town of Caceres misreading it as Cadiz, so the letter was delivered to the latter city. At Cadiz the letter was treated as though it came from England. The orange rate mark of 11R was applied for 11 reales the single rate letter from England to Remote Spain under the 1805 rate, and an orange cds of 14 January 1843 was applied to the reverse of the letter. Eventually someone realized that the letter was addressed to Caceres, particularly as the Spanish name for the province Estremadura was clearly written on the upper left of the obverse. An orange letter A was stamped on the cover (just after Caceres) in Cadiz. This mark of A was the method in Spain to indicate that a postal charge was annulled. Postscript 59/151

40 The letter was delivered to Caceres. Since this town was in main Spain, the rate for this letter was correctly calculated as ten reales. At Caceres the letter was stamped with the black 10R s and on the reverse with a cds of 21 January. This is the only cover from any country to Spain I have seen that was rated to both zones in Spain. Table Rates in reales. Adarmes <= To Main Spain To Remote Spain 10 12½ 15 17½ 20 22½ 25 27½ 30 32½ 35 37½ 40 Table Rates in reales. Adarmes <= To Main Spain To Remote Spain 11 13½ 16 18½ 21 23½ 26 28½ 31 33½ 36 38½ 41 Fig. 1 Postscript 59/152

41 Fig. 2 Fig. 3 Postscript 59/153

42 LAKE ISEO Grahame Lindsey The smallest and most picturesque of the Lombard lakes to have a postal service. Lake Iseo or Lago D Iseo is situated in the Oglio valley east of Bergamo, it is slightly S-shaped with a large island, Monte Isola (2000 feet high), in the centre. It has a maximum depth of over 800 feet, is 15 miles long and between 1¼ and 3 miles wide. It also has been known since Roman times as Lake Sebino. During the Austrian occupation period a steamer did operate on the lake but no postal markings are known relevant to that service. Nor did the early days of operation under the Kingdom of Italy produce evidence of a postal service, although we know that from there was a full office on Monte Isola and that was later reduced to a colletoria dependent on Iseo. The steamer route was Lovere Pisogne Marone Sulzano - Siviano (on Monte Isola) Tavernole Iseo Predore Sarnico. There were many daily sailings in each direction, two in 1871 and by 1913 there were four, the boats used were Commercio [Fig. 1], Concordia, Iseo, Lovere, Sebino II, Sarnico, Citta de Bergamo and Citta di Brescia. There are only three distinct types of mark and they are all Messaggeri marks applied by postal messengers travelling on the boats. Postscript 59/154

43 The messengers who carried the mail were permitted to accept loose letters in addition to collecting mail from quayside boxes and boxes on the steamer. The messengers cancelled the adhesive or facsimile on postal stationery with the handstamp provided. Fig. 1 - Lake Steamer Commercio The first postal mark is the regular Italian Messaggeri mark of the two line type which was introduced on all the lakes in the early 1890s. It reads SERVIZIO POSTALE / SUL LAGO D ISEO [Fig. 2] and was used from 1891 to Fig letter from Sarnico to Monza with two line mark SERVIZIO POSTALE / SUL LAGO D ISEO (coll. A. Becker) Postscript 59/155

44 This was followed by Guller handstamps with bars reading SERVIZIO POSTALE SUL LAGO D ISEO and numbered 1 to 3. The number can be at the bottom [Fig 3] or the side [Fig. 4]. They were introduced in 1896 and used until Fig Letter bearing SERVIZIO POSTALE SUL LAGO D ISEO ( 2 ) handstamp with number at bottom. Fig Picture postcard bearing SERVIZIO POSTALE SUL LAGO D ISEO ( 2 ) with numeral at side. Postscript 59/156

45 A Guller handstamp without bars reading SERVIZIO POSTALE SUL LAGO D ISEO* [Fig. 5] was introduced in 1930 and used until Fig Postal stationery card bearing Guller handstamp without bars reading SERVIZIO POSTALE SUL LAGO D ISEO* References:- Lindsey, Grahame Italian Lake Mail Postal Markings. Italy & Colonies Study Circle 2004 AIR CRASH NEAR OSLO 15 APRIL 1963 Susan Oliver I have recently found an item of interest to Færoe Island collectors, being an envelope which has been involved in an air crash sent to Iceland from Thorshavn, by air via Norway. The envelope, from which the stamp has floated off in the damp, is somewhat damaged round the edges enclosed a small cellophane envelope of modern German stamps (still present) and was addressed to S. Blondal, a stamp collector, in Borgarfjardarsysla, Iceland, with a letter from the sender, Ingvard Jacobsen of Thorshavn. Part of the datestamp can be seen but the figures of the actual date do not show because they would have been struck on the stamp, now no longer on the envelope. This letter, with the stamps inside, must have been sent to Norway for some reason, then onward transmission to Iceland. There is a letter (May 13th 1963) from Mr. Blondal to Mr. Jacobsen stating that he had received Mr. Jacobsen's letter in Iceland in a plastic envelope, together with the stamps, all seriously damaged, and that also enclosed was a short note from the Post Office in Reykjavik, saying "Enclosed sending was rescued from the aeroplane that crashed near Oslo on April 15th" (1963). This note was sent on to Mr. Jacobsen, possibly for proof, together with the stamps no longer required. Unfortunately there are no markings or handstamps on the envelope advising that is has been salvaged from an air crash but the correspondence is explanatory. I do not know of any other items to or from the Færoes involved with an air crash, but would be pleased to hear from anyone who has anything similar. Postscript 59/157

46 THE WW2 LATI SUBSTITUTE ROUTE OF PAN AMERICAN AIRWAYS John Wilson When the uncensored Italian LATI airmail service between Europe and South America was closed in December 1941 under pressure on Brazil by the Allies, Pan American Airways assumed responsibility for maintaining the flow of mail on the route by providing a substitute service across the South Atlantic during the summer months, when their FAM-18 aircraft were transferred to the winter route New York Botwood Foynes UK. The LATI substitute was initially unscheduled in the months between January and May 1942 and details of the flight times are difficult to determine. From May 1942 to October 1942, and for similar dates through to 1945, the LATI substitute flights were recorded in the Civil Aviation Authority Report on the Progress of Civil Aviation [Ref.1] written at the end of each wartime year. They show that Pan American flew a service weekly on a circular route New York-Bermuda-San Juan-Trinidad-Belem-Natal-Fisherman s Lake (Liberia)-Bolama- Lisbon- Bermuda-New York from May 1942 onwards, alternating between counter-clockwise and clockwise rotation. Note that this route did not transit Miami, which was serviced by a spur from San Juan using existing FAM-6 flights. A major objective of the replacement service was to bring mail between Axis controlled Europe and Argentina into the Allied censorship ring, as it had been proved that money, industrial gemstones, espionage reports and actual agents had been travelling the Italian LATI route from Germany and Switzerland. Astonishingly however, Pan American continued to transfer mail between Europe and South America at Natal in Brazil, thus avoiding censorship, a fact that was quickly noted and taken advantage of by the Germans and Swiss. Hasty action by the British Government resulted in a team of Imperial Censors being sent to Bathurst in the Gambia, arriving there in February The PanAm flying boats were persuaded to make Bathurst a stop for mail censorship en route to and from Lisbon, although this was resisted by Pan American. First mail censored at Bathurst was on 8 March 1942, and ten through mails were examined between then and August 1942 [Ref.2] by which time the censorship function had been fully transferred to San Juan, Puerto Rico. Under the terms of the San Juan Agreement between the British and American Governments, a permanent censorship was set up in San Juan, although this did not assume full operation until late July The agreement called for all mail between South America and Europe in both eastward and westward directions to be diverted at Natal, Brazil, and sent onward to San Juan, Puerto Rico for Allied censorship. After censorship the mail would be sent to destination by northbound or southbound flights, whichever were available at the time. Censorship was not 100% successful, and overspill mail was occasionally forwarded to Trinidad or Bermuda for examination before onward transmission. Mail between South America and the United States was not affected by the San Juan Agreement, and continued to be carried by the existing FAM-6 route to be censored in Trinidad or Miami. [Ref.3] Tracing and identifying covers that travelled by the LATI substitute service is complicated by needing to refer to two interlocking sets of data; the first of these is the timing and routing of flights, the second being the timing and locations of the censorship functions so desperately needed by British Intelligence. Postscript 59/158

47 THE ROUTES 1. From late December 1941/January 1942 to 8 May 1942, Pan American flew a counterclockwise route across the South Atlantic via New York-Bermuda-San Juan-Trinidad- Belem-Natal-Bolama-Lisbon, returning by the same route in a clockwise direction. Evidence suggests that it was somewhat irregular and not operated to a fixed schedule. It should be noted that this route was in addition to, and interleaved with, the existing FAM- 18 winter route flown in a clockwise-only direction via West Africa and Brazil. 2. From 8 May 1942 to 14 November 1942 the LATI substitute service flew a weekly circular route New York-Bermuda-San Juan-Trinidad-Belem-Natal-Fisherman s Lake (Liberia)- Bolama- Lisbon-Bermuda-New York, alternating counter-clockwise/clockwise on alternate weeks. 3. From 14 November, when the aircraft flying the northern summer route of FAM-18 New York-Botwood-Foynes were returned to the southern winter route. I believe that the LATI substitute mail was probably carried by this route, but the flights took place only in a clockwise direction so as to take advantage of the winds circulating around the Azores high pressure zone. THE CENSORSHIP From late December 1941/January 1942 to 8 March 1942, Pan American carried mail between South America and Europe using Route 1, transferring the mail at Natal (Brazil) and thus allowing it to pass uncensored (much to the delight of the Axis). From 8 March 1942 to August 1942, Pan American made frequent unscheduled stops at Bathurst, where the mail was censored. This procedure applied to both Routes 1 and 2.. So-called enemy mail was bagged and forwarded to London for special attention. As a consequence, covers carrying a Gambia censor mark or label are not often found. In some cases no more than one or two covers have surfaced, showing a Gambia censor interception. As the joint Anglo-American censor station at San Juan began operation, and in a growing overlapping function with Bathurst, mail began to be diverted at Natal and we see covers censored at San Juan, Trinidad and sometimes Bermuda. From late July 1942 the bulk of mail was censored at San Juan with only occasional overspill censorship at Bermuda. References: 1 Ministry of Civil Aviation. Report on the progress of Civil Aviation Ref. DS.43225/1. (Appendix C Regular Air Services in British Empire Countries other than the United Kingdom ). 2 H.B.M s Home Office. History of the Postal and Telegraph Censorship Department Vol.1 and Vol. 2., (Public Records Office Reference DEFE 1/333. Authorised reprint 1996). 3 Wilson J. The San Juan Agreement and its effects on airmail routes across the South Atlantic. Air Post Journal. Journal of the American Air Mail Society. March Postscript 59/159

48 Argentina to Spain carried on first flight to be intercepted on March 8th 1942 at Bathurst (Gambia). P.203 censor applied at Bathurst. Arrived Barcelona 13 March Switzerland to Argentina carried by Pan American, transferred at Natal, thus avoiding censorship. Despatched 25 April 1942, arrived Buenos Aires 16th May. Postscript 59/160

49 Argentina to France carried by Pan American, transferred at Natal, thus avoiding Allied censorship. Endorsed Via Natal. Correct rate 1P45 paid for LATI route. Despatched 28 February Argentina to Germany via Natal. Intercepted at Bathurst and forwarded uncensored to London where censored and seized. Released Postscript 59/161

50 Argentina to France via Natal. Diverted to San Juan for censorship (Censor 2932) then forwarded. Despatched 28 July 1942 in the first week of full time censor operations at San Juan. Germany to Argentina despatched 3rd November 1942, diverted at Natal for censorship at San Juan (Censor 14039) and seized, finally released to Buenos Aires on 20 September 1945 Postscript 59/162